Ellie couldn’t keep the panicked barrage of thoughts at bay. How long would he be in the hospital? This morning’s stay had probably already burned through her meager savings. Would he sue her for damages? Was she going to lose her business over this?

His demeanor had lulled her into believing he wasn’t planning to press criminal charges against her, but she wasn’t positive about that. Would she end up in jail to pay for her careless mistake? It was probably what she deserved for not being cautious enough behind the wheel, but that didn’t mean it was what she wanted to happen. She would look horrendous in an orange jumpsuit.

She knew it was selfish to worry about her own well-being when he was the one who was battered and bruised in a hospital bed, but she had worked so hard for everything she had, the thought of losing it all paralyzed her with fear. The worry must have been obvious on her face because he squeezed her hand in his own much larger one as if to reassure her. She couldn’t help but notice how soft his skin was, which then caused her to wonder what kind of moisturizer he used.

Marveling that her mind could get so sidetracked at a critical moment like this, she focused her attention back to the injured man in front of her. Clearing her throat, she said, “About that, don’t worry about a thing. I’ll take care of everything.” Deciding her words sounded pathetically lacking, she added, “of course.” She had no idea how she would make it work, but she knew she couldn’t expect the pedestrian she hit to pay for his own medical bills.

His face softened as he looked up at her. “That is exactly what I was going to say to you.”

Stunned by his chivalry, she openly gaped at him. “No!” She said the word adamantly. “It was my fault. I’ll pay your expenses.”

“It wasn’t completely your fault,” he said, kindly attempting to let her off the hook. “I should have been wearing reflective clothing and paying more attention. It was just so early, that I wasn’t expecting any cars. Where were you headed at that early hour?” He seemed genuinely interested in her answer.

His chocolate eyes sparkled as he listened to her talk about Snickerdoodle. She couldn’t help but notice how handsome he would be, were it not for the cuts and already-coloring bruises spread across his scruffy face. The fact that she had been the cause of those injuries made the guilt bubble up in her belly once more.

“What happened just then?” he asked her. “Your face was glowing with excitement as you talked about your bakery, which sounds marvelous by the way, then your face fell like you lost your best friend.”

“I just feel so bad about what happened.” Her face crumpled at the words and a sob escaped her throat as the reality of the morning finally began to set in on her.

Like most men when faced with a crying woman, a panicked expression crossed his face. The uncertainty was short-lived. He scooted over to the far side of the bed and held his arms out to her.

“What?” she asked him, trying to swipe the streaming tears from her face with the back of her hand.

“Come here,” he suggested.

“No, I can’t. I don’t even know you,” she stammered before adding, “I’m sorry for crying.”

“You had an incredibly stressful day, as did I.” He lifted one raven eyebrow in her direction. “Now, come here.”

This time it was more of a demand than a suggestion. Ellie wasn’t sure what came over her, but for some reason, she complied with his request. Careful not to jostle him too much, she sat down stiffly on the edge of his hospital bed.

Quick as a wink, his naturally dark-skinned arm reached around her middle and yanked her back against him. As much as she knew this was completely inappropriate, it felt so marvelous to be held by him. She allowed her weight to sag back against him. One of his arms was wrapped around her, while his other hand caressed her long blonde hair, soothing her as she cried.

The nurse, who had helped Ellie earlier, sauntered into the room. Her mouth formed an ‘O’ of surprise when she discovered Ellie in bed with her patient. If she had been planning to chastise them, Trey’s firm instructions changed her mind.

“Could you hand me that box of tissues, please?” He indicated the box that was just out of reach. When the nurse complied, he added, “We would appreciate not being disturbed for a while. Thanks, Trina.”

The nurse nodded and shuffled out of the room as if his polite, yet terse instructions made him the one in charge. Ellie tried to not bristle at the fact that he already knew the nurse’s name. Once Trina’s white shoes had squeaked out of the room, Trey pulled a few tissues from the box and gently dried Ellie’s tears, which had stopped flowing.

“Now then,” Trey started, “I think since we are sharing a bed that it is high time we learned each other’s names.”

She started to balk at the insinuation he had made about them sharing a bed, but her mouth opened and immediately closed again because he was right. “I’m Trey,” he informed her.

Not wanting to admit that Trina had already told her his name, she responded, “It’s nice to meet you, Trey. I’m Ellie.”

“Ellie.” He let the name roll off his tongue, and she liked the way it sounded coming from his mouth. “It’s perfect,” he decided, and the compliment made her feel like she was glowing with warmth, even though she had nothing to do with the choice of her own name.

“That expression…the one on your face right now is the one that should always grace your beautiful face.” He grinned down at her. She could feel her cheeks flaming hot when he continued. “I don’t ever want to see that worried look in your eyes again. The concerned look that showed up when we were talking about my medical bills. So, don’t ever give those silly bills another thought. Got it?”

His tone was light, but she sensed this was important to him. Well, it was important to her too. “No, I insist,” she told him firmly. “You shouldn’t have to pay a dime for becoming my car’s hood ornament.”

“Hood ornament?!?” he yelled, but tickled her side to let her know he wasn’t angry at the dig.

She laughed as his fingers jiggled into her ribs. “Stop!” she yelled, still laughing.

He stopped immediately and their eyes locked onto each other. They were both breathing heavily, and when he leaned in, she sensed that he was going to kiss her. Not ready for that, she practically leaped out of the bed.

“I should go,” she informed him briskly as she was retrieved her purse.

He grinned up at her, flashing his pearly-whites. “You’ll be back to check on me, right?” His gaze was intent upon her as he waited for her answer.

“Of course,” she promised then told herself that she must be crazy for thinking she saw a look of immense relief in his expression. The idea that this perfect specimen of manhood would care whether or not he ever saw her again was preposterous. He probably had women lined up waiting to take care of him while he was weak.

Already rushing toward the door, she turned back to add, “Seriously, don’t worry about the bills. I’ll take care of it.” As an afterthought, she added, “I mean, if you have health insurance you can use, that would be great. I’ll pay for anything that isn’t covered, though.”

“I have pretty good health insurance,” he assured her.

She tried not to let the immense relief show on her face, but was uncertain how successful she was. When she started toward the door again, his words made her pause. “There is one thing you could do for me,” he hinted.

Stopping herself from responding ‘anything,’ she asked, “What would that be?”

His twinkly eyes let her know he was up to something. “Well, I’m guessing the food in here is terrible,” he started. She nodded, urging him to continue. “Sneak me in a cupcake? I LOVE cupcakes. They are like little self-contained, single-serving sized parties. You can make individual celebration treats and decorate each one how you want. They are truly the perfect dessert.” Somehow this handsome, hunk of a man looked like a mischievous boy when he gushed about cupcakes.

“What flavor?” she asked him.

His response of, “Surprise me,” made her shake her head and chuckle.

“I’ll see what I can do,” she promised as she left his room.

She passed Trey’s nurse in the hallway. Trina’s previously friendly expression had morphed into something much more catty. “Didn’t take you long to dig your claws into him, did it?” The woman openly glared at Ellie.

“Excuse me?” Ellie was stunned by the woman’s cold tone.

Lifting her shoulders, Trina went on, “Can’t blame you, I s’pose. Who would turn down a shot at bagging Trey Donovan, one of the richest, most handsome eligible bachelors in the world?”

“Trey Donovan?” Ellie asked, feeling numb. The name sounded vaguely familiar.

The nurse simply rolled her eyes as if Ellie were the densest person on earth. “Google him,” she said briskly before sauntering away.

As soon as Ellie got back to her car, she used the end of her hairbrush to slide her phone out from where it was caught beside her seat. Google images pulled up numerous, glamorous shots of Trey wearing tailored tuxedos with a parade of different gorgeous women at his side.

Just when she was starting to think she might have met the perfect man, she discovered that he was one of the wealthiest, most powerful men in the world.

“Dammit!” she shouted and pounded her fist on the steering wheel.